Hatch ventilator for refrigerator cars



g- 10, 1943- J. s. LUNDVALL 2,326,664

HATCH VENTILATOR F612 REFRiGERATOR CARS Filed Sept. 7, 1940 I 2 Sheets-Sheet l F'fz Patented Aug. 1%, 1943 V U ITE ames! mew I *r-zarcn VENTEATOR Fora asraronaaron I I: cAns"" John SJLun'diialL Chicago, Ill., assignor to Union Asbestos & Rubber Company, Chicago,*lll., a corporation of Illinois Applicaticn'septeinher v, ie ias nai No, 355,1'l5l 3 Claims. (01.98-5-6) This'invention relates to a hatch ventilatolxfor refrigerator cars and has for its object to provide an improved hatch ventilator for refrigerator cars equipped with convertible bulkheads by which such cars when converted fromice refrigeratedcars into ventilatedcars' m yjbe adequately ventilated without exposing the 'lading to damage from rain or dirt which. may enter the cars through'the open hatches. This invention is an improvement upon the" convertible. bulk -h head iorerefrigeratorcars ooveredhy'my pendthe readyIus e. of the car for orfor its ice 7 load," a v I V a a I A further obj ectfof' the invention is to p rovide a hatch ventilator i whichjwill provide a pilfer proofenclosure so as to render the Car an efii-j cient and safe car ,whenrused as fa ventilated ,car,

Without ice refrigeration, and which, when in col;

' lapsed position; will form'aperforate wall for the ing' application Serial No. 316,f7087n0w Patent No.2,238j700. e

Most refrigerator cars are used intermittently as refrigerator cars in which the 'l'ading is cooled with a quantity of ice loaded intoice bunkersat cneend or hothends of the car, andfintermit tently as ventilatedcars in which the. lading'is ventilated by a stream ofair inducted intothe car through hatches in the car roof atone end of the car and, emitted through other hatches at the other end of the car after circulation through the car lading; some refrigerator carsare usedas much as three-fourths of the time as venti lated cars.

Collapsible ice h unkers have been devised l can be collapsed 'to'render most of the spaceoccupied by the "bunkers available'for cargoand thus to increase the portion offthe car available'for;

When the car lading when no ice is required. is used as a ventilated car andthe space beneath the open hatches employed .ior cargo, the cargo must be protected against damage from rain or aireborne'dirtwhich may enter the car th'rough the hatches. 1

Anobject of this hatch ventilator which will protect'the lading-of the car from damagehby rain and dirt without interfering} with] the j circulation of the air requiredto ventilate the car.

a hatch ventilator forrelrigeratcr cars which canbe made a part of the convertible bulkhead;

of a refrigerator car, which can be placed into operating position without the use ottools and when collapsed .Will so interinesh lwith the other 7 structuralunits oi the i'cebunker as torender the enul-eeapaeity or the icerlounlzer available for its iceload. i f t r :5; A further object or the invention is to provide a'hatch ventilator which is so designed that when collapsed'fa'gainst the car wa'll it will; provide a; I ductfalong the'car Wall for the passageof air currents, and whent extended or collapsed will leave no structuralmemb'ers to interfere with invention isto provide a ventilator iir'retract'ed position against the side v 40 A further object of the invention is to provide ducts so formed.

Referring collapsible ice bunker to form ducts whichjsepa rate the ice load from the car wall and topermit the freevfiow of air about the ice and through the A further object of the invention is to provide a hatch ventilator which serves as a collector of any'ra'in or air-borne "dirt blown, intothe car throughthe open hatches and "will direct any water so collected'to suitable drains and away fromgthe lading w ith whichitwo-uld normally,

come into contact, d I

.7 Othenohjects, advan'tages and capabilities of.

the invention will appl arirom the following description; of ,a preferred embodiment thereof,

taken in conjunction with the; accompanying dremvingsin which: v 7 I Y fFigure 1 is a: longitudinal, sectional elevation" of one end "of a 'refri eratorca r equipped with a 1 convertible bulkhead and with the hatch closed andithe hatch ventilator in'collapsed position to I man o e wen 01" the collapsible'io'ebimker.

"Fig; 2 is'a fragmentary sectional elevationof the san'lefendcjrefrigerator; ar with the 'hatch open the'convertible bulkheadin retracted position, and the hatch ventilator in extended position beneath the hatch.

Fig. 3 is a transversesectional elevation of a" portion of the same end'of the refrigerator car taken on the, line s-s of Fig. 1, with the h'at'ch wancrtne fa'r'." v. r Figids a fragmentary sectionalelevation taken on. the line A-A oi FigL-Vl ofr the upper portion of the car with the bulkhead in extended position, showing. th trough by;wh ich foreign matter collected in thefhatch ventilator tray. is carried away from the'lading to the side of the car.

to, the drawings; the reference, nugrn'eral I ll indicatesthe end Wall of arefrigerator .car cemposed ofthe conventional outer walll-l f inner sheathing i 2 and interposed insulation}, 1 3.: V

flfhe end wall lil isisupportedupon conventionalstructuralmeinbers, such as the transverse sill. l4 and the longitudinal sill I5. The roof of' t'he car ;l isof conventional; construction with the roof deck ll separated from the ceiling is by 'merely as a ventilated car.

The description'this iar has been of, convene,

The colan air space l9, which may suitably be filled with an insulating material. The roof is supported by the transverse frame member 20.

At each end of the car and on-both sides of the roof, openings or hatches 21 are made within the roof to give access to the ice compartment within the car for loading ice into the car and to provide for a means for ventilating the car when the car is used without ice and operated The hatch 2| is closed by the hatch cover 22. Only one hatch is shown on the drawings. Another hatch is normally provided on the other side of the car and 3! which maybe of any number adequate to support the floor rack and the lading which it is designed to sustain. The floorrackis composed of the longitudinal channel beams 32 and the V ,transverse'floor members 33.

fioor members are shown in the form of inverted channels mounted in spaced relation to provide space for the free passage of ail-through the floor and the lading borne thereby.

Beneath the longitudinal channel beams 32 is mounted a grid 3;. This grid is designed to a similar pair of hatches at the other end of the car.

The floor of the car 23 isfot suitable sturdy construction with conventional structural member supporting the floor such as the longitudinal sill l5 supporting th transverse lower fioor planks 24 and the upper floor planks 25, mtween which a suitable insulating filler 25 is interposed. Above the upper floor planks 25 is maintained the main floor rack 21, normally removable for cleaning, which is composed of longitudinal stringers 28, which run thelengthotthe body of the car, and transverse planks 29. The planks 29 are separated from each other by crevices to form a rack upon'which the lading within the car may be supported, but which will'nevertheless permit the. passage of the current of air passing along the floor of the car through the fissures between the planks and through the ladtional refrigerator car construction. lapsible ice bunker with which the car is equipped forms the subject matter 'ofnry pending application, Serial No. 316,708. It comprises the ice bunker floor rack A shown retracted against the car wall in Fig.- 1; the ice grates B and C, the first of which is shown in extended position and thesecond in collapsed position in Fig. .1; the

permanent base D for the convertible bulkhead shown in section in Fig. 1; and the convertible bulkhead E which is shownin extended position in Fig. l, and a' fragment of which is shown in retracted position in Fig. 2. g The hatch ventilator F. of this invention also forms partcf the collapsible ice, bunker, serv ing, when in collapsed position, asone of the walls of the ice bunker andproviding ducts along, the car walls for the circulation of cooledair,

and when in extended position forming an im proved pilfer-proof closure for the hatch opening 2| and a protection against injury to the lading from rain or any foreign obiects that might'enter the car throughcthe hatch opening.

Before proceeding with the description of the hatch ventilator, the other ele ments of th e col-j lapsible ice bu-nker will be briefly described.

slon o1 the'refrigerator car floor rack 21.

Two ofjthese floor racks A are preferably used at each'end of thejcar, one reaching from the side'of the car to the middle'thereoif, the other.

machine from the oppwd side to'the middle, thus inereasing the facility with which they may be swun-g into and out of posit-ion. v Only one rack iss'ho'wnl provide a perforated wall of the ice bunker when the floor rack A is folded against the side of the car, both to separate the ice load from the wall of the car and to permit free circulation of air'along the car walls and through the interstices of the grid against which the ice is piled.

When the floor rack is in lowered position, the free sides rest upon the aprons upon the bulkhead support D, and the transverse ledge 36 formed upon thebeam 3'! at the end of the car, forming a continuation of the floor rack 21.

This renders the end of the car available for.

lading without the intervention of any obstacles or variation in the floor'level; l The construction is suchthat air may readily pass through this collapsible floor rack to jpermit ventilation of the lading and to. present no obstacle to the free passage of the air along the floor of the car andthrough the permanentfioor rack 21 in the The refrigerator car is provided with suitable latches not shown secured to thesiderwalls of the car which engage the end of the floor rack to hold it in vertical position 'as'shown in Fig.1.

Thecollapsible ice bunkeris provided with two ice grates, the lower one'of which is marked B, and the upper one C.jj'I'hese grates are of substantially identical constructioniand are therefore described together. The lower ice grate is shown in extended position and the upper Fig. 1.

one inretracted condition swung into vertical position against the end wall of: the car in ie mounting signed to permit the loading'pf ice into the up perhalf of the ice bunker when less than a run bunker of ice is used. Frequently, the distance to'be'travelcd or th e'weather conditions encountered enable the canto be refrigerated with; asmall quantity of ice, and as most efiicient cooling is efiected 'by havingtheice near The ice grates are formed of the longitudi nal frame members- 33 with suitable intermediate longitudinal bars' and transverse grate bars (not shown). IEach of the frame membersafi is pivotally secured to the end of the car upona pivot39 ;mounted'within the duct 49. 3 Thus, when fthe frame members 33 are swung into -vertical position they may be maintained len- Each floor'rack A is pivotally'incunted to the tirely upright and leave 'a substantial distance between the surface of the the actual wall of the car.

Each of-the longitudinal frame members 33 is notched at its outer end to 'engage'a horizontal --bolt 1'32 secured tofthe convertib1e'bulkheadZELI "Ihe' grate bars th'us form horizontal supports for the bulkhead E which may be readily-diseng-aged when the bulkhead is to be res These transverseo'f grates at .two lev'els is 'degrates B and "C and tracted. To secure the grates -B and C invertical position when the ice bunker is collapsed, suitable latches may be provided. 7

Secured to the floor of the car is thetransverse' member Di shown in transverse section in Fig. 1, which forms the permanentbase for the convertible bulkhead when in extended position." It is composed of several pedestals 43 secured to the floor of the refrigerator car, supporting a beam 44 which runs almost the entire width of the'car-- and is secured to the several respective pedestals lt. "The beam 44 supports the bulkhead wall E when in extended position and the pedestals 43 are formed to provide the aprons 35 which form supports'for the'longitudinal members 32 of the collapsible floor rack A. W a V The convertible bulkhead E is composed of a number of vertical beams 45, which form a' vertical frame work for the planking 46 whichforms the bulkhead proper.

The bulkhead is hollow and has an inner metal Wall 4'! spaced from the planking 45 by the vertical beams 45, and perforated to permit ready circulation of air from the ice bunker into'the ducts formed in the bulkhead between the planking and the inner wall.

I To permit a flow of the air current from the lading into the ice bunker, the bulkhead planking 45 is'not extended from the bottom of the bulkhead to the ceiling, but stops afoot or two from the ceiling, where the inner. bulkhead wall 41 -is slotted and screenedas shown at 4?. .Thebulkhead Ejis movably suspended from the side walls of the car by means of the-wheels E8 carried by the beams 45 and which ride on thej-tracks 49 secured to the inner sheathing of the side wall'of the car. It. also rides upon the lower wheels which ar'e'borne by the longitudinal, beams 32 on the floor rack.

The top edge. of the bulkhead is reinforced with a channel beam 5!, which extends the full length of the bulkhead and provides a sturdy member by which the upper part of thebulkhead can be firmlyheld when the bulkhead is in extended position. "This channel beam is held between the legs of short sections of H-beam 52 which swing ,upon pivots within the ceiling of the'car. ,v The grate bars 38 of ice grates B and C, when swung into horizontal-position with their keepers engaging the horizontal bolts 42 form firm structural units to'maintain the bulkhead in vertical position and to sustain the bulkhead against the thrust and shocks of the ice load, within the bunkers as the car travels.

To-maintain the convertible bulkhead E in member is shown in a horizontal position, swung across-and under thecar hatch; a position in which the hat-ch ventilator issupported When thecar is used as a ventilated car. g

- 55, secured to the channel beams 56; 51 and 58' in closedposition. I

Beneath and secured tothe beams 56 and 51 is the hatch ventilator drain plate 62. This plate which ive" the member rigidity and form the frame members for the hatch ventilator. In place of the-grid the -upper surface of the ventilator may beformedo1 a-plate perforated at frequent intervals, to provide for the entry'ofair into the car whenthe hatch ventilator is.

closed and the hatch cover 22 open. r

The upper grid or surface plate 55 is also with suitable openings 59 and 60 to provide toe and hand holds for entry into and climbing from the ice bunker.

The intermediate bearn 51 andthe beam 58 are preferably perforated with a series of open ings til as shown in Fig. '3 to permit free passage of air into thecar when th'e'hatch'ventilator is is solidthroug'hout the area underlying the hatch opening 2! and for substantial margins beyond that area. The plate is flanged atits inner edge.

with the flange S 3,'and at'its outer edge with the flange 64. The beam 5Bforms a wall along the third edge of the plate. The plate is made the trough 54. I Y

At one end of the hatch ventilator F it is piv otally secured to the sidewall "3ilof the'car by means of the hinges 66, the knuckles 0f whichare fastened to the car side wanna thes'trap's to the hatch ventilator'fiF asbe'st shownin-Figs'; l and 3. The sliding bolt fi'lfwhich can be manipulated only from. within the car, engages I th'e'adjac'ent beam suspended from, thi'car' c'eil-' ator' in hor'i zontalipo ing to lo clrthe hatch 've sition'.

When thehatc; ventilator .is-locked in horizontalv position, and the hgatci'i cover' 22 held in raisedposition by means of hatch cover bracket 68 and hatch coverdever 6.9,. the perforations through the grid 55, and the channel'beams 51* and 58, and the slot BES; permit thefree passage .of "air' throu gh thefventilator and'into the ear 'ffor'" the purpose ofventilation. A ,suitableflock retracted position against the end wall of the car, a pivoted detent 53 is provided. This detent is pivoted at its outer end and its free end will swing into the path of the. wheel and prevent movement of the wheel and suspended bulkhead;

Secured to the vertical supports 45 of. the

bulkhead is the transverse trough 54, which eX-. T tends across the full width of the 'car. This trough is an important'part of the hatch ven tilator and cooperates therewith to protect the ladingr in the car from rain and dirt.

(El is provided"tolockthe'hatch cover in closed, post on, or it may bef l'ojcked by passing a padlockthjrough bracketfisiand leverfia T When the hatch ventilator F. 'is' folded down against the side, wall"of; the car "asshown in Fi. gs.: landS, Whenthe car is .to be used for ice, 7 refrigeration, the perforations in jthe grid. or clian'nelbeanis permitthe ready passageof air through the; ice andthrough' theico'nvection ducts formed within lthe hatch' lventilator and by thfeff "other structural i elepn 'fibunker: and through th spaced from the carwall by the channel beams 55, 57 and 53, and thus forms ducts between the drain plate 62', which liesagainstthe side Wall of the car, and the ice with which the collapsible, bunker may be filled. ,The hatch closure F thus serves, when in loweredposition, as a convection in the same positionin section; In Fig; 2

cut

duct and as one of thewalls of theice .co-mpa-rt ment.

I In order to secure the hatch ventilatorhin vertical position when swung. down as shown in the freeend of the floor rack A. When-thelatter member is latched in vertical position, the

hatch ventilator is similarly restrained.

If the hatch ventilator is used on a car which is not designed for ice refrigeration, and is therefore not relied upon to serve as part of the ice bunker wall and to provide convection ducts along. the car wall when swung into inactive position along the car wall, the grid 55- may be omitted from the structure. k

Operation of the hatch ventilator If the car is in use as an ice refrigerated car with a fu-llload of ice in the bunker, the. respective elements. of the convertible bunker will be in the respective positions shown in Fig. 1, the'fioor rack A in vertical position, againstfthe. wall, the bulkhead E in advanced position, the lower icev grate B. in horizontal position. tosupportthe ice load, and the upper ice'grate C swung into vertical. position against the wall. The hatch ventilator will be swung into vertical position against the car wall above the floor rack A.

Air circulateswithim the car by convection, the warm air passing through the top of the bulkhead into the ice bunker, where it is cooled. The cooled air passes-down the ducts formed along the car side. walls by the floor rack and. hatch ventilator, the end wall by the screen ll, and in the bulkhead by the inner wall 41.

When the car is changed from an ice refrigerated car to aventilated car, the hatch cover 22- is opened, the ice grate B swung into vertical position, the floor rack. A and the hatch ventilator Air entering the hatch'fpasses freely through the hatch opening 2L. the hatch ventilator grid 55, the perforationsfil in the beams 51 and 58,

the. slot- 65, and the ductssinthe bulkhead, as

well as. over the flanges EIiand 6.4 on .the drain Plate 62, y

The, principal opening for the passage of the air is the slot 65, throughwhich the air is directed into the ducts formed by the. bulkhead E which direct the stream of air 'to the floor of the car.

From the floor of the car it passes upwardly through the rack 21 and the fissures between. the 1 transverse. planks, 29 upon which the 'l'ading in" with drains in the car floor'through which the water-and dirt escape from the car.

- essence,

j The flanges upon the drain. plate 62 preventany rain or dirt entering the car over the lading and thus protect the lading against damage.

Although the invention has been disclosed in connection with the specific details of a preferred embodimentthereof, it is to be understood that such details are not intended to be limitative of the invention except insofar as set forth in the accompanying claims.

Having described this invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A hatch ventilator fora refrigerator car having a ventilating opening in its top comprising a drain plate adapted to. underlie thefopening with its edges spaced from the side walls of the car, the drain plate having upstanding flange members around its periphery to retain water thereon and formed with openings therethrough above the plate to permit the flow of air from below the ventilating opening, the drain plate being formed adjacent-one end with a drain opening, and a trough mounted in the car to register with the drain opening when the drain plate is in its horizontal position.

ing a drain plate adapted to underlie the open ing with its edges spaced from the side walls of the car, the drain plate having upstanding flange members around itsperiphery to: retain water thereon and formed with openings therethrough above the plate to permit the flow of air from the ventilating opening through the last named openings around the drain plate, means pivotally connecting the drain plate to a wall of the car so it can be swung into a vertical position along one wall of. the car or into a horizontal position below the ventilatingopening, the drain plate being formed adjacent one end with a drain opening, and means in the car to register with the drain-opening when the drain plate is in its horizontal position to conduct any water flowing through the drain opening along a wall of the car. I 3. A hatch ventilator for a refrigerator car having a ventilating opening in its top comprising with its edges spaced from the side walls or the car, thedrain plate having upstanding flange members around its periphery to retain water thereon and formed with openings 'therethrough above the plate to permit the flow of air from the ventilating opening through the'last named openings around thedrain plate, a perforated cover member secured to the upperv edges of the flange members to lie against the car top in register with the ventilating opening means pivotally connecting the drain plate to a wall of the. car so it can be swung into vertical positionalong one wall of the car or into horizontal position below the -ventilating opening.

JOHN s. LUNDVALLs I 2. A hatch ventilator for a refrigerator car having a ventilating opening in its top compris- 

